Last night, the LeBron James show destroyed the Detroit Pistons en route to giving the Cavaliers a 3-2 series lead and putting Detroit into a must win in Cleveland on Saturday night. What was more amazing than the game (easily the best of either conference final) was LeBron's performance in the fourth quarter and the overtimes. He scored 29 of Cleveland's last 30 points and finished with a playoff career high (and Cavs playoff record) 48 points. My question is simple; why didn't Detroit foul him and send him to shoot free throws? Granted, he's shooting 78% in the playoffs, but he missed several down the stretch! Why not take your chances there? Especially if you claim to be tough defensively, like Detroit. Here's where Ben Wallace's absence hurts the Pistons; last year, LeBron and company were reluctant to drive to the rack with Ben there to block or alter shots. This year, with no Ben, and soft interior defenders like Webber and Rasheed Wallace, LeBron had no fear of driving hard and scoring at will in the paint. About three or four times, including the game-winning layup with two seconds left, LeBron had dunks. And the Pistons refused to foul! If you prefer to look at things from a glass half-full perspective, the Pistons lost game 5 of round two last year to the Cavs to trail 3-2, and then won the next two to take the series. I'd rather look at the glass half-empty perspective; the Cavs are a different team than the one who lost last year. They are more confident and realize they don't want to return to the Palace for game seven on Monday night. And most importanly, LeBron ha slearned how to finish games. He's learned when to shoot and when to pass, making him even more unpredictable. So Cleveland should take game six and make their first NBA final (good luck trying to beat the Spurs). And Detroit will probably break up this outfit and start building for the future. One closing thought; you think David Stern was leaping out of his seat when Cleveland won? He must be thrilled that the Finals can be salvaged! Amazing how things can change late, huh?